Morikami to host annual Obon Weekend

Fushu Daiko, a South Florida-based taiko drumming group performs at the Morikami Theater. [Photo by Morikami Museum]

The Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens hosts its annual Obon Weekend on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 16 and 17, with a range of cultural activities, performances and memorial tributes to honor Obon.

Obon is a traditional Japanese festival held to honor the spirits of dead ancestors, who are believed to return briefly to visit their loved ones. The observance blends solemn remembrance with joyful celebration, and the Morikami’s Obon Weekend captures this balance through cultural rituals and interactive programming.

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Throughout the weekend, visitors may remember loved ones by writing their names and personal messages on special memory slips, which will be displayed near the bon altar of museum founder George Morikami in the Kamiya Room beside the Membership Desk. The memory slips and altar provide a quiet space to pay respect to ancestors.

A highlight of the weekend is the return of Fushu Daiko, a South Florida-based taiko drumming group. Performances will be in the Morikami Theater on Saturday and Sunday at 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. Tickets for the drumming performances are $5 for museum members and $10 for others, in addition to museum admission. Tickets are available at morikami.org/event/obon-weekend.

Fushu Daiko leads a Bon Odori workshop both days at 3:30 p.m. on the museum’s lakefront terrace. The traditional Bon dance, performed in unison to honor ancestral spirits, begins at 3:50 p.m. The workshop and performance are included with museum admission.

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Guiding Light Lanterns for $5 and Lantern at Home Kits for $8 are available in the museum lobby and enable visitors to bring home a piece of Obon and symbolically guide the spirits of loved ones.

The weekend concludes with the Launch the Lantern Dinner on Sunday from 6:30 to 10 p.m. The fundraiser features a gourmet dinner, sake tastings, lantern decorating, live taiko drumming and a floating lantern presentation over Lake Morikami. Proceeds benefit the museum’s exhibitions, education, emotional wellness and expansion. The $225 tickets are sold out, but visit morikami.org/event/launch-the-lantern-dinner to see whether anything becomes available.

General admission for Obon Weekend is $16 for adults, $10 for children, and free for Morikami members. The museum is at 4000 Morikami Park Road in Delray Beach. For more information, call 561-495-0233, or visit morikami.org.